New Jersey State Police didn’t do all they could to prevent discriminatory policing practices from their ranks, the state’s comptroller said in a new report issued Tuesday. The report found that while the state police regularly issued lengthy reports on racial profiling, “leaders never meaningfully grappled with certain data trends that indicated persistent, adverse treatment of racial and ethnic minority motorists,” the Associated Press reports. “The fact that for years the State Police was aware of data showing disparate treatment of people of color on our roads — yet took no action to combat those trends — shows that the problems run deeper than previously realized,” Acting State Comptroller Kevin Walsh said in a statement.
The report comes as part of the state comptroller’s mandate under a 2009 law to conduct an annual review of the state police and its Office of Law Enforcement Professional Standards. It also follows a 2023 report commissioned by the state attorney general that found evidence of discrimination against Black and Latino drivers. In a statement, Attorney General Matt Platkin, who oversees the state police, used the terms "inexcusable and deeply troubling," to describe the report's findings. "It is not acceptable for a modern law enforcement agency to ignore the impact bias and implicit bias have on all professions — including law enforcement,” Platkin said.